


Weekend at Gibby's

by skerryB



Series: The Chronicles of Evie, Astrid and Manta Rae Witt [8]
Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Other, Uncle Gibby is literally the best two words ive ever typed, brief mention of panic attack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:21:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25101565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skerryB/pseuds/skerryB
Summary: Astrid would never tell anyone, but Uncle Gibby was her favourite, so when he had insisted on babysitting the three of them while Mabbie and Papa celebrated their anniversary, she couldn't help but be a little excited.
Relationships: Bloodhound/Mirage | Elliott Witt
Series: The Chronicles of Evie, Astrid and Manta Rae Witt [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1794418
Comments: 8
Kudos: 26





	Weekend at Gibby's

**Author's Note:**

> I had this idea floating around in my notes for a while, but an anon on my tumblr suggested I write a babysitting fic, so here it is
> 
> This fic is dedicated to Kitty, who drew AMAZING art of the Witt kids. I literally cried when they sent it to me. 
> 
> Also thank you to Britt, for once again being an awesome beta reader  
> 
> 
> https://twitter.com/kittykaelliope/status/1279975941301772291?s=19

Astrid would never tell anyone, but Uncle Gibby was her favourite, so when he had insisted on babysitting the three of them while Mabbie and Papa celebrated their anniversary, she couldn't help but be a little excited. 

Uncle Gibby was calm in a way her other aunts and uncles were not. He knew the value of silence, of taking moments to breathe, which Astrid had always admired and appreciated about him.

Even now, when Rae was literally running circles around his kitchen island, tracking tiny muddy footprints over the wooden flooring. He didn't yell. He simply stopped, breathed, and waited until Rae ran within arms reach and scooped her up with a single grab, slinging her over his shoulder in one swift motion.

It was times like these that Uncle Gibby reminded Astrid of the ocean. Whether it was his bubbling laugh, or the boom of his voice that crashed like a breaking wave, every ounce of Uncle Gibby said going with the flow. 

Even as he's standing in the kitchen sink, washing mud off Rae's feet, he's calm. He's singing to her. He doesn't even seem to mind the pools of water that splash onto his floors from Rae's feet kicking the water. 

Plus, Astrid thinks as she takes another bite of the manapua in front of her, relishing in the way the fluffy dough melted in her mouth. Uncle Gibby had the best cooking, but she wouldn't dare say that in front of Papa.

Astrid liked staying at Uncle Gibby's, because he didn't have beds for them all, so instead they all built a massive blanket fort in the middle of his living rooms with inflatable mattresses and more blankets than anyone could ever use, and slept in that. He told them stories too, not from books, but from memory, using his hands as he spoke to match the tales he was weaving. His voice soft, lulling the three of them to sleep in their unsturdy castle of bedsheets

But there was something else in his voice, a deeper sadness that Astrid had only seen once, when she had asked about a photo she had found that had her uncle, much younger than she had ever seen him, and a man she did not recognise. 

She had watched the smile drop from his face for a second, before it was replaced by a larger smile. almost too big for his face. 

"Don't worry about it Manini," He says, using his hand to ruffle her hair into a mess with a laugh. 

\---

The first time Astrid had stayed with Uncle Gibby was two years ago. She'd just turned eight, and Mabbie and Papa had given her a whole set of coloured pencils for her birthday, really nice ones, with strong leads. She took it everywhere, even Uncle Gibby's house, and drew at his dining table while He helped Evie with her homework, Baby Rae's head resting against his shoulder while she slept. She'd drawn him, holding Rae, with a confused look on his face as he read the question under his breath. 

The next time they had visited, for a summer barbecue with all of her family, the same drawing sat front and center on the fridge door. She had watched as Uncle Gibby showed it to everyone that had come through the house, pointing out the parts that he liked and gloating that he "Had an _Original Astrid Witt _Sketch, with her signature and everything! See?"__

__

__Years later, she paints a proper portrait of him. It's for a school project, so he takes it incredibly seriously. Clears his whole schedule to sit for her, still as a statue, while she paints him._ _

__It ends up being one of her favourite pieces, the fine lines of his tattoos bold against his skin tones. He had been stoic when he sat for her, but she couldn't imagine painting him without a smile, his white teeth lighting up the entire canvas. the background, and abstract mix of deep blues and greens, flowed easily into his dark hair, a nice contrast to the pale green of his floral button up shirt he had insisted on wearing._ _

__

__That one, which she gifts to him at the end of the school year, he hangs on the wall next to his dining table._ _

__

\---

__Uncle Gibby also gave the best hugs, and knew the best time to give them. Like now, when a gust of wind from an open window had slammed a door shut, waking her from an otherwise peaceful sleep. She knew she should stay in bed, that it was late and she would get in trouble if she didn't, but a part of her needed to get up, get a drink of water._ _

__She hadn't realised she was shaking until Uncle Gibby had found her, curled small on the kitchen floor. A gentle hand on her shoulder that had startled her, made her head snap up to look at him, before he pulled her into a hug._ _

__"Oh manini, it's okay, I've got you." He had whispered, while she had cried into his shoulder._ _

__She didn't know how long the two of them had stayed like that, she'd fallen asleep at some point. When she woke up, it was morning, the light only just shining through the threads of the blanket fort's ceiling. She could smell the familiar scent of batter and blueberries, and hear Rae and Evie laugh as Uncle Gibby sang a song, something familiar, but in a language she did not yet know._ _

__Eventually she exited the fort, the leg of her pyjama pants making her stumble a little as she untangled herself from the sheets._ _

__"Look at me now, a whole school of maninis" Uncle Gibby had said when he spotted Astrid emerge. He flipped a pancake onto a plate in front of a very excited looking Evie, before pausing to kneel in front of Astrid._ _

__"Are you doing okay?" He asked, his voice soft. Astrid nodded in reply, before looking towards the benchtop._ _

__"can I sit up there and watch you cook, please?"_ _

__Uncle Gibby broke out into a smile, as he nodded. "you need a hand getting up?"_ _

__Astrid nodded, and laughed at the way Uncle Gibby lifted her with ease, plonking her down on the bench top, right next to, she realises, where Rae had sat yesterday to have the mud scrubbed from her feet._ _

__At ten, she was almost at the point where Papa struggled to lift her, but Uncle Gibby did it with ease, probably because he was so big and strong._ _

__Not that Papa wasn't strong, but he… wasn't as strong as Uncle Gibby. Not that Astrid would tell him that to his face._ _

__Uncle Gibby lets her eat her pancake while sitting on the bench, plate in her lap, as he asks cycles between asking Evie about school, where she's top of the class in every subject, while holding Rae up so she can try and flip the pancake with a spatula._ _

__She fails, but Uncle Gibby is there to salvage it, eventually putting it onto a plate for Rae's grabby hands to tear into it._ _

__

\---

__When Elliott pulls into the driveway to Makoa's house, Bloodhound's hand resting on his knee, he lets out a content sigh. Their anniversary had been _nice _, and he was glad Makoa had convinced them to go, saying that it would be good for them.___ _

____But, as he stares through the front windows of the house, and sees Makoa surrounded by the three Witt children,all four of them laughing together, he gets the impression that it was good for Makoa as well._ _ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on twitter @SkezzaB, and on tumblr @lightupthisuniverse


End file.
